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May 05, 2014

Disney discussion (part four)

The “what
is history” category demonstrates that Disney makes the recognizable past way more
magical than it really was. Previous princess films were acted out on the
backdrop of ambiguous place and time. Belle started the rend of recognizable
history in provincial France, but it was when I realized that the stories of Aladdin (1992), Pocahontas (1995), and Mulan (1998)
were not appropriate answers on history tests that I experienced true disappointment.
I probably should have guessed that Jasmine wouldn’t have been allowed to wear
such a skimpy getup; that colonization was not that rosy and romantic, that
even in Native American tribes trees didn’t talk, and that Pocahontas could not
actually paint with the colors of the
wind; that the legendary Mulan didn’t have a sassy pet dragon. History
textbooks would have been so much more interesting to flip through if any of
those weren’t a figment of Disney’s imagination. Even if their places in
history are completely fictional, Disney’s Jasmine, Pocahontas and Mulan show
movement in the right direction for strong, relatable, role model princesses.

Family
lives for these historical protagonists starts breaking from the established
script. While Jasmine (like others) grows up with only her little, round, happy
father to parent her, he seems more like a traditional maternal figure than the
powerful sultan. The law states that Jasmine must marry a prince before her
next birthday, and her father is the ruler, so that causes tension. Pocahontas
can relate; her dad (the chief of her tribe) wants her to marry one of his
greatest warriors, not so subtly gifting her dead mother’s wedding necklace to
her with the news of the potential engagement. She and her dad have a pretty
violent disagreement over the colonists…so violent, in fact, that Pocahontas
almost gets her head chopped off. Awkward.
Lucky for Pocahontas, she has “Grandmother Willow” to tell her to follow
her own path (even if said grandmother is a tree, the advice stands). Mulan is
different in that she grows up with both parents, a wonderfully feisty
grandmother, and more ghostly ancestors than she knows what to do with. She
also exhibits more family loyalty than any of the other princesses when she
tries to be someone she’s not (a perfect bride) to bring them honor before
cross-dressing and doing the right
thing, saving all of China in the process.

All
three take part in different friend circles. Jasmine sticks to convention by
having her only friend be an animal, more specifically a tiger named Rajah. It
doesn’t seem like there are many people in her absolutely huge palace for her
to be friends with (other than creepy Jafar) which explains her lack of
acclimation when she tries to escape into the city: you can’t just take apples, Jasmine, geeze. Pocahontas,
like Jasmine and most other princesses, finds herself sketched with a slew of
animal buddies (most notably Meeko the raccoon and Flit the hummingbird). She does
have a gal pal named Nakoma, and while the two of them are supposedly besties,
Pocahontas ditches her and she ends up getting Kocuom (the Native American
suitor) shot and John blamed for it. So, I’m not feeling the closeness. Mulan
again proves herself to be a special flower (like her dad says) when she makes
friends in the army. These friends stay loyal to her even after it’s revealed
that she’s a girl, donning women’s clothes to help save China. What more could
a girl ask for?

Oh, the
“what is history” love interests: characters, each and every one of them.
Aladdin’s a street rat and Jasmine marries way, way, below her station. Despite their magical flying carpet date, he
lied about everything while he was courting her. I guess adventuring together
and uniting against a common evil erases that because when her dad changes the
law so that she chooses her husband, Jasmine
uses that power to propose to Aladdin. Jasmine is a pretty typical Disney
princess up until this point, but this shift sets her apart and makes her a bit
more of a good “role model”—she is not a prize to be won. She will do the
winning, thank you kindly. Pocahontas initially starts a conversation with John
Smith to sate her curiosity about these strange settlers, but quickly falls in
love with him, as they are gallivanting through the forest, singing. There’s
the whole messy bit of her almost fiancé getting shot, a war nearly breaking
out, the star crossed lovers almost losing their heads, and John getting shot,
but in the end they part ways with vows of eternal love and a kiss. Unlike
Ariel, Pocahontas chooses her entire world over her relationship, subsequently
creating the first untraditional “happy ending” for a Disney princess. Mulan,
her intelligent, outspoken personality, and overtly male first impression
probably confused the heck out of her poor love interest, Li Shang. Either
that, or he’s just horribly awkward around girls; “you, uh… You fight good” is
not how your flirt, buddy. The emperor takes pity on him and tries to play
matchmaker, but Mulan doesn’t need any help. The very next time she sees him,
she asks him to dinner. Despite their rather unconventional origin, Mulan and Shang end up with a solid relationship
built on trust and camaraderie. These historical heroines actively work to be
the protagonists, saving themselves and their love interests with strong
morals, ample skills, and intelligence. They control their destinies and create
their own happy endings. Personally, I think Jasmine, Pocahontas, and Mulan are
the strongest role models Disney produced in their 20th century
princesses.

2 comments

I agree with you, especially because Mulan is my favorite princess, haha. I agree with their stories and the power that they have and what makes them different than the other princesses. I love it so much!

Thanks Kriselle :) Mulan kicks ass! My brother and I were obsessed growing up- to the point where my dad cut our front hedge to look like a dragon and we called him Mushu <3 (I miiight be a bit biased in my favorite princesses)

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